THE ‘CHATTER’ LINE: AN UNAMBIGUOUS MESSAGE CAN BE FOUND IN THE RESPONSE TO ROB HEATHCOTE'S BLOG

By Graham Potter | Tuesday, January 22, 2013

The increase in ‘chatter’ on racing forums throughout the country following the sentiments expressed in Robert Heathcote’s recent blog on HRO, ‘The Millions was not all magical’, certainly highlighted the level of discontent that many racegoers feel about the treatment meted out to them by race-clubs.

Race-club officials would do well to take heed of the implicit overtures made in the majority of postings where a rational line of thought is maintained. The trend there is totally unambiguous.

Ignore the postings of the ‘radical fringe’ by all means, but officials would be making a costly mistake if they were to fit anyone who complains into that category, which seemingly often appears to be their escape hatch as they appear to push matters that should be dealt with to one side.

If racing is to save ground, officials have to come to the understanding that most of those who complain are those who care. Those who couldn’t care a damn if racing implodes don’t waste their time writing a comment. They also don’t stick around to support an industry in crisis. They might do the once a year social gig thing but, if racing relied on their support, it would race once a year.

So all of the pertinent customer feedback that racing has to rely on and needs to pay attention to comes from what … for the most part … can only be termed the disgruntled die-hards. (I’m talking about people who actually attend race-meetings).

These are racing regulars who put forward opinions, ideas etc because of their genuine interest in trying to help turn around a deteriorating situation. Sure, the tone of the delivery of their feedback often leaves much to be desired, but that largely has come about because of the frustration, anger, despair that these people arguably have after feeling their basic requirements have been ignored for so long.

That shouldn’t, in any way, detract from the essence of the valid points they are making.

These racing enthusiasts should be the first point of call for race-club officials. It should be a major priority for them to shift through their feedback to find legitimate points of concern and then address them accordingly so that the adjective ‘disgruntled’ can disappear from a punter’s make-up in terms of the on-track experience.

Only when the race-day experience starts living up to the hype of a true, professionally run sporting venue, not only for the elite but for the ‘man on the street’ in the public area, can it be marketed as such.

Racing can then go out and look to build its clientele. If that is done the wrong way around, racing will be chasing more people away than it will be gaining.

It’s not rocket science!

The response to Heathcote’s blog was just the latest reminder of a vital job that needs to be done.

While Heathcote’s blog tackled the specific situation at the Gold Coast on Magic Millions day, the lessons in what he said have a general application.

The overwhelming customer response numbers supporting Heathcote tells its own story. (At the last count Heathcote had one detractor in about eighty responses, and that was attacking Heathcote on a personal level, not contradicting any of the points he had made in his blog).

So it will be interesting to see if race-club officials are open to change and will accept and work with constructive feedback/criticism in 2013.

Up until now, in my experience at least, most have stuck to the tried and failed game-plan of firstly taking a defensive stance when broached on any serious subject … and then, when that posture proves to be ineffective, they become offended at what they see as criticism, as if those asking the questions are being unfair and that racegoers simply ‘don’t understand’ the problems facing race-clubs.

I fully acknowledge there is some truth in the latter point … but it is now time to put those differences aside and to set about closing the gap in-between the mindset of race-clubs officials and racegoers for the betterment of the industry.

Heathcote’s blog was a more than useful prompt in that regard.

It’s how others react now that counts!